


give the world to you (blow us all away)

by radiowrittenheart



Series: spread your wings, my little butterfly [2]
Category: Star vs. The Forces Of Evil
Genre: (are y'all surprised by that), Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Bittersweet, Gen, Happy Ending, Major Character Injury, Pre-Canon, Shit Goes Down: the story, baby Star is a treasure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-03
Updated: 2017-03-03
Packaged: 2018-09-27 20:21:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10047065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/radiowrittenheart/pseuds/radiowrittenheart
Summary: Queen Moon prepares for a war, and finally earns her title as Undaunted. But not without making a few painful choices.





	

**Author's Note:**

> MOON BUTTERFLY IS HONESTLY MY FAVE I NEED HELP + I JUST WANT MORE HISTORY OF HER AND THE WHOLE BUTTERFLY FAMILY IS GOOD AND PURE AND DOESN'T DESERVE PAIN BUT I'M CURIOUS SO THIS HAPPENED
> 
> ... *phew* here y'all go  
> (unless you've been living under a rock or just don't like musicals, the title is a lyric from "dear theodosia" from hamilton)
> 
> (i also wanna apologize in advance i can't make up spells)

A cry echoed in the main bedroom of Butterfly castle.

And one would be surprised that it did not come from the newborn Princess. Rather, it was the Queen that the entire nation looked up to, hunched at her vanity, wearing something entirely different than her royal ballgowns. Sheer chainmail, thick plates of silver, all compromised together to form a suit of armor.

Queen Moon was not what most made her out to be.

“I’m just saying, darling,” her husband pleaded. “This is lunacy! Y-you can’t just go off like this!”

King River held their daughter in his arms, the fussy child whining slightly at her parents’ bickering. Moon turned on her heels, and took the baby from her husband, trying to calm down little Star, but to no avail. As her parents’ heated argument rose, so did her cries.

“River,  _ please _ ,” Moon begged. “I’m the one who made this mess, I have to be the one to fix it,” She spoke in a hushed voice, gently bouncing Star in her grasp. “I need you to protect her. And if I don’t come back—”

“Don’t talk like that!” River blurted out, just enough to alarm their newborn daughter.

Star began to scream and wail against her mother’s chest, tiny fists pounding against Moon. The queen groaned, pressing a kiss to the top of the baby’s forehead. River winced, mouthing a ‘ _ sorry _ ’ as he watched his wife try her best to comfort their little girl.

“Oh, my sweet girl,” Moon whispered, smoothing down wispy strands of gold and kissing Star’s reddening tear-stained face. “Don’t cry, your father was just being silly.” She sighed, sitting down in the rocking chair by the window, letting her daughter wail her tiny little lungs out. She did a futile attempt in shushing the alarmed baby, but it was all in vain.

River stammered, shuffling over and placing a hand on his wife’s arm, glancing up at her. “You have to come back,” he pleaded.

“You can lead Mewni on your own for the next fourteen years if need be,” Moon muttered, almost aggravated; whether with him or their fussy daughter was unclear. “It wouldn’t be ideal, handing the kingdom over to Star at such a young age, but if you had to—”

“That won’t happen,” River pressed. “Moon,  _ you have to come back _ ,”

The desperation and fear in his voice was evident, and it caused Moon to frown heavily. She paused, trying to focus on attending to Star, but there was too much written all over her face. Mostly distraught feelings, ones of fear and worrying, but other indescribable emotions. Taking note of this, River gently retrieved the wailing infant from his wife’s arms, trying to tend to Star while making sure his wife was at ease.

Moon sighed, eventually swallowing hard, unable to make eye contact with her husband and child. “I know what’s at stake here,” she said. “But this is something I have to do. I will fight, and I will try my hardest to come back to you, to both of you, but…” Her chin wobbled, and she brought a fisted hand to her mouth, biting down on a knuckle to prevent from crying. “There’s always the chance.”

River had no response available, and just looked away from his wife, sighing as his young daughter snuggled up against him, crying ceased.

“She likes you better,” Moon spoke up, clearing her throat.

A smile tugged at his lips, and he shook his head in protest to her statement. “I think she’s still deciding,” he said, with a soft laugh. “Just give her some time,”

Moon smiled, reaching out to gently cup their daughter’s face, stroking a finger on the baby’s cheek. Star giggled, and curiously grabbed her mother’s finger, staring at it seriously, which summoned laughter from both of her parents. Their firstborn, their beautiful baby girl, with so many distinct features from both sides of the family at such a young age… she took their breath away with almost everything she did.

“Can you say ‘daddy’, Star?” River said.

“Now who’s trying to ‘give her time’?” Moon laughed.

And then, almost as if a cruel joke by the universe or some other greater design, trumpets sounded. Moon seized up, then rose from her seat carefully. She breathed deep, then turned to her husband, leaning down while he stood up for their lips to meet in a brief kiss. For a moment, River held on, only for Moon step back and politely reject whatever embrace he tried to attempt. Then, she looked at their poor, innocent and incredibly young daughter.

Moon bent down to meet little Star at eye-level.

“Star, my darling,” Moon said, clearing her throat to keep her voice from shaking. Even if her daughter couldn’t understand what was going on, Moon couldn’t let herself break down. “I’m your mother, and I love you. A-and that’s why I’m going to do this. You might not see me again—” She heard River’s sharp inhale and had no choice but to ignore it. “—but I just want you to know that this is all for you.”

She took her daughter’s tiny hands into her own, kissing them and screwing her eyes shut to prevent any tears from leaking out. Then, without another word, Moon rose, practically scattering out of the room. And she was so sure of how brave and bold she was…

...she made sure the door was completely closed before she began to cry.

“My Lady,”

She jumped when one of her guards addressed her, and she used the sleeve of her dress to wipe away her tears before facing him. “Yes, Scorpius?”

The guard saluted. “This is very brave of ya, ma’am,” he said. “Not many Queens would go all by themself.”

Moon gave a firm smile. “Well, I’m not completely alone,” she replied. “I have you and your platoon. We should be just fine,” Her voice faltered ever-so-slightly, and she hoped it wasn’t noticeable. The other guards began to walk down the hall, and she saluted right back to them.

Wand under her armor, sword at her side, she was ready.

“Gentlemen,” she declared, her voice sincere and regal as ever. “We have a war to win.”

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

“Hello, Moon,”

That voice should have made her stop dead in her tracks, but instead, Moon kept marching on, holding her wand tightly, persistent with a small army behind her. A few selected guards, who understood the risks of this mission, this brief battle. Was it much of a war, really? When this was over and done with, hands would be washed clean and everyone would walk away from this mess. Well, that would be the case if Mewmans won. If monsters reigned victorious, however—

“Hello, Toffee,” Moon eventually replied, as she halted and her company followed suit.

His army rivaled hers. It almost struck fear into Moon, to see all of those monsters of various shapes and sizes, there was nearly a dozen more than she had. But she didn’t cower, or show any signs of fear. She practically dug her heels into the ground, staring at him … and he stared right back. His yellow eyes glinted in the lighting of dusk, and suddenly, Moon had a sinking feeling.

Toffee was smiling.

_ Why _ was he smiling?

“Your move,” she said.

Like a game of chess. That was the first lesson she had been taught in her training, so very long ago. Then again, she wasn’t very good at chess. War seemed like a vaguely similar game. Moon gasped when one of the monsters lunged, a phoenix all aglow, dive-bombing straight towards her and her soldiers—

_ “Tsunami swirl storm!” _ The spell was instantly blurted out, the wand held out and a sudden burst of water hit the phoenix, causing them to fall mid-air and flop in the middle of the dueling sides.

A low chuckle escaped Toffee. “Your move,” he repeated mockingly.

Moon heaved out a heavy breath, something similar to smoke wisping off of her wand. She grit her teeth, and swallowed hard, rolling her shoulders back as she looked at him intently. Then, such a dignified royal and graceful queen let out something like a battle cry, charging the crowd with her soldiers behind her, all ready to do whatever needed to be done.

Some went down instantly, others began to sword fight— even daring to use their bare hands, while Moon found herself face-to-face with Toffee. He seemed unarmed, but she didn’t take the chance, reaching for her sword just as she held her wand out as a precaution.

She tried to catch her breath, to dig deep, to find her magic—

But a swift, unexpected punch to the stomach knocked the wind of her, and she stumbled. Her sword slipped from it’s holster, clattering to the ground. Moon coughed, glaring at Toffee, who immediately lunged for her.

And as she dug her nails into the ground, just as he was over her, another spell was hollered;

_ “Monster of gloom and despair, I cast you out with a flare!” _ she shrieked, grabbing Toffee by the collar just before he landed on top of her. Lilac wings shot out from underneath Moon, and she shot up, throwing her enemy in the air— her wand shooting off a powerful, almost blinding beam.

Both armies stopped for only a moment, to wince at the power of the queen’s magic … for the monsters to watch their leader collapse on the ground, groaning. Heavy, thick green blood drowned him, he coughed and spluttered, clutching what seemed to be one of his own body parts.

Moon clumsily landed, both armies staring at her. She awkwardly crouched down, fumbling for her sword— and a pair of strong, scaly arms wrapped around her neck.

The last thing she heard was one of her guards screaming, and then, the whole world went black.

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

The first thing she heard was crying. Full-on, gross, ugly sobbing. Moon groaned, trying to move, but also felt yet another surprisingly strong pair of arms around her body. She yelped, trying to kick, waving aimlessly for her wand .... only to gasp in pain and find herself staring at a very familiar pair of blue eyes.

“River?” she said breathlessly, noticing her husband leaning over her.

“Who else would it be?” he blurted out.

For a moment, Moon didn’t become aware of anything, just the fact that she was here and she was safe. Her expression went from tense to pure, utter relief in seconds and she smiled peacefully. River laughed, placing a sloppy kiss on Moon’s cheek, wrapping his arms around her. In response, she blushed and grinned— until the king’s true strength showed, and the impact of everything hit Moon all at once a second time.

“R-River, darling, let go,” she stammered.

She groaned as her husband pulled away, and she curled up on what she was laying on, clutching her entire torso… or making an attempt to, were it not for one of her arms wrapped in a cast. She was in an infirmary. She found herself lying on a hospital cot and a gasp escaped her when she noticed a gratuitous amount of blood; shimmering, sticky purple on her gown. She tried to sit up, and groaned in pain, feeling a foreign numbness near her abdomen.

“What happened?” Moon said, her voice suddenly rising an octave with fear.

“Ah, good to see you’re awake, your Highness,” a doctor spoke up, as he swung the curtain to the side and eyed the royal couple. “It’s been a while,”

Moon’s face fell. “How long?” she asked.

The doctor shrugged. “About forty-eight hours,” he said. “Give or take,” He lifted up a small flashlight shaped to resemble a pen, flashing it in front of the Queen’s eyes, alarming her for a few instants before she began to instinctively follow it. “Vitals seem better than when they brought you in…”

He scribbled something down, and Moon glanced to her husband. “You’ve been here the whole time,” she said softly. “Haven’t you?”

River gave a low chuckle, and a shrug for a response. She could see the signs; he was tired, as if he was about to fall over and take a nap for even longer than she had been out. Parts of him seemed thinner than usual, and his broad shoulders slumped a bit. He even neglected to shave, his usual goatee on the verge of becoming a beard.

“Thank you,” she whispered, retrieving his hand and squeezing it. “I love you.”

“I love you too, my dear,” River said, his voice weary. “I … I was worried for you, you know.”

Moon gave a sad smile and nodded. “I know, I’m so—” She was cut off by a wail that instantly alarmed her. River sighed, reaching down to pick up a basket where their daughter lay, screaming and kicking against the royal Mewnian blue blanket she was wrapped in.

“Oh, hello to you too, Star,” Moon said, wincing slightly at the volume.

The doctor also flinched at the child’s incessant crying, her father attempting to comfort her. “It was a miracle you survived that, your Highness,” he spoke up. “After you blasted the leader of that monster clan—”

“I would rather not speak of that,” Moon interjected. “My apologies, Doctor.”

“No, no, I understand,” he assured. “But if I may ask, how much do you remember of the fight?”

Moon drew a blank. Her arm was numb in the cast, her side hurt — as if someone had kicked her there, with enough force to make just breathing painful. The back of her head throbbed, she could barely think anymore— “I don’t know,” she sighed. “My last memory is sending that magic blast and then everything after that … nothing.”

The doctor hummed, looking at his notes. “Well, there was much more than that,” he mumbled. “But to respect your wishes, we do not have to speak of it.”

“No, now I want to know. What did they do to me?” Moon argued, her tone of voice becoming angered.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed River’s eyes expand, him shaking his head. It must have been quite bad to send her husband into such a worrying tizzy. The doctor even hesitated, before just ignoring the subject with a wave of his hand.

“You were attacked, your Highness. After the blast is when the real battle had begun, it would seem. One of your guards brought you in, unconscious and half-dead. Unfortunately, his own injuries did not heal. So, from the top,” the doctor sighed, flipping through his file. “You seem to be suffering from a broken arm, two fractured ribs, a mild concussion, along with magic exertion and … my Queen, I’m sorry, but there was other sorts of damage from what happened during your fight. The surgery we performed on you was a patch up. I’m afraid to say you are incapable of having any more children.”

For a moment, Moon paused, and glanced to River, who clung onto the squirming, fussy Star. There was pain in both the king and queen’s eyes, before a sigh slipped past Moon’s lips.

“I’m sorry, River,” she said, self-consciously tracing the fresh scar under the paper gown she wore, instead of her typical royal one. “I know you wanted more,”  She could easily recall when they had first gotten married, how he had wanted a big family, just like the one he grew up with. (Of course, Moon had agreed that they would reach nowhere near eight children, not even close.)

“It’s fine, you have nothing to apologize for,” he assured, his smile sad but sincere. “What’s important is that you’re here, and you’re safe, Moon,” He suddenly let out a yelp, followed by a nervous laugh, as his mustache was violently tugged on by tiny but rather powerful Star. “Besides, I think this one has more than enough energy, she’s been an absolute mess since you left.”

Moon bit back a groan as she shifted on the hospital cot, reaching out to hold her rambunctious daughter. “Shh, shh, I’m back,” she murmured. “Did someone miss me?”

Star wailed, immediately nuzzling against her mother, causing both of her parents to break out into smiles. When times seemed so grim, their little Star would shoot through their lives and seem to make things shine.

“Don’t worry, darling,” Moon whispered, cradling her daughter as best as she could. She sighed, letting Star cry and squirm until it was all out of her system — perhaps an infant’s way of saying ‘ _ never go away again you scared me I was worried about you _ ’ — before the baby girl lay defeated on Moon’s chest, nothing but incoherent babbles left. “Your mother’s right here. And I’m not going anywhere,”

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

**_epilogue_ **

 

Naturally being active, it was pure torture for Moon to be bedridden as long as she had been. She hadn’t even spent such a long time in bed when pregnant with her daughter but just because of one fight, the way those monsters had treated her… it still stung now, even if she was written off as ‘stable’. Her arm was completely functional, and the headaches from her concussion had subdued. The surgery scar on her abdomen was fading, but the pain remained. Regardless, she was functioning now.

Well, if one could call finally being outside of her bedroom chambers ‘functioning’.

“Your Majesty,” a lady-in-waiting spoke up, curtsying a little as she approached the Queen.

“Iridescence, I’ve told you—” Moon often tried to protest how incredibly formal her servants could be, but this time, all she could do was sigh and give in. “What is it?”

The young, naive girl stammered for a moment, ruffling through her skirt pockets before pressing a key into the Queen’s hand. “For you, your Highness,” she said. “Oh, and Princess Star has been crying, but I haven’t been able to track down King River. Would you like me to take care of her?”

Moon stared at the key, puzzled for a moment, before shaking her head. “There’s no need,” she assured. “I can take care of her,”

“Are you positive, my Queen? In your condition—”

“I am completely healed from my fight,” Moon declared. “And I would very much appreciate it if you and all of the other servants never mention the incident again. The citizens of Mewni will soon let it blow over anyhow,” She bit back a comment about how she downright  _ hated it  _ when the servants would try to take care of her daughter. Royal duties did often tear both the king and queen away from their child, but whenever she had the chance, Moon wanted to be there.

Another curtsy, Moon nearly rolled her eyes, and Iridescence scattered off to do some other duty.

Pressing the key into her palm, Moon continued to walk down the hall, towards the nursery where her daughter had been left. (River had insisted, they had spent so much time working on the room, it should be put to use at least once in a while— to which Moon had tried to argue she just couldn’t let go of their precious Star sometimes.) She creaked open the wooden door, peering in to hear little Star wailing and notice her adorable attempt to try and climb out of her crib.

“You’re going to try harder than that if you want to escape,” Moon laughed, crossing the floor and reaching into the crib to pick up her daughter.

Star instantly began to fuss even more so, letting out little babbles that sounded like bad imitations of roars.

“Oh, yes, darling, you’re terrifying,” Moon mused, hugging her daughter and placing a kiss on the baby girl’s forehead. “Come on, we’re going on an adventure,” She turned the heavy key in her other hand, staring at it intently. “Well, sort of,”

Star reached out, grabbing her mother’s face and babbling, as if to say ‘ _ what in the world are we doing, mother, unhand me now _ ’ — but Moon just smiled. She recognized the purple crystal on the key, not unlike the one on her book of spells. But it glimmered in a different sort of fashion, almost hypnotizing. A soft gasp escaped Moon, and she bit her lip.

The room that this key was for just so happened to be a room that she hadn’t been near in a very, very long time… a special room that was practically special access. 

The Hall of History.

“Let’s go,” Moon whispered.

She exited the nursery and made sure not a single soul followed her as she headed for the lowest level of the Butterfly castle, even beyond the dungeons. Royal secrets did not always equate to royal shame. Some things were just better kept behind closed doors.

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

It was far too dramatic, that was the first thought she had. Moon was almost puzzled as she found herself staring at the tapestry; she looked a few years younger, and she was riding Lil Chauncey despite him being too weak to go into battle, while Glossaryck was far off in the corner. How peculiar. He hadn’t even communicated with Moon since the birth of Star. But nonetheless, everything else was chilling and powerful. Toffee’s finger missing, the pure rage and determination of a warrior queen and lovely but vulnerable Mewni in the background.

The portrait of a Queen at the peak of her reign, which had only been a few weeks prior.

Tapestries always displayed the most powerful, pivotal moment in a Butterfly woman’s reign…

...and Moon could say that after this battle, she would never be the same. She didn’t even realize how close, how protectively she was clutching her daughter until she heard a soft whine. As if the tapestry would lunge out and come to life, that Star was in the midst of the scene before them.

Moon shivered and let up on her daughter, noticing that her baby girl was actually very happy, and very unfazed, kicking and squealing. It comforted the queen, and she sighed.

“I did that for you, you know. To protect you,” she whispered. “Your mother loves you very much, Star.”

Star nuzzled against her mother’s collarbone, happily clapping. “Mama!” she squealed.

It took a second before Moon’s entire face lit up, and she held her daughter up, staring the squirming baby directly in the eye; sky blue against periwinkle. “Yes, darling,” Moon said, her voice choking up. “Yes, that’s me, that’s your mother up there,” She kissed the soft pink hearts on each of Star’s cheeks, turning her daughter around so she could gaze at the tapestry. “And soon you’ll be up there too… but not too soon, alright?”

A series of babbles and coos was all the infant could give for a reply, but it was enough for Moon. She smiled, tears of joy in her eyes, and she held on tight to her daughter.

“I love you, sweetheart,” Moon whispered. “Be better than me. Be stronger, smarter—”

Her tears began to flow for various reasons now. She couldn’t look at the tapestry any longer. It was a beautiful inspiration for only a few fleeting moments. Strangers would see it as a victory for Mewni, and in some ways, it was. But all Moon could see was a dangerous feud between two old friends. She sighed, holding Star up against her once more as she walked off, her footsteps echoing through the grand hall of Butterfly family history.

Star whined against her mother’s skin, punching and kicking as a plea for more attention. Moon shook her head, a small smile on her expression.

“I think you’ll do just fine, though,” Moon assured. “Just be you, dear. I suppose that’s all I can ask,”

“Mama,” Star repeated, reaching out and grabbing her mother’s free hand, drooling on the silken glove.

Moon laughed, and lifted up Star’s small hand, kissing the soft knuckles. “Oh, what am I going to do with you?” she mused.

It was a rhetorical question. Of course her daughter, only a few months old, wouldn’t be able to answer. Moon herself wasn’t even sure. Someday, she would pass on the wand to this fragile, precious thing. But for now, she would be there to protect her child, to help Star prosper and succeed in whatever endeavors she got herself into.

“Be better than me,” Moon found herself whispering again, mostly to herself.

She herself was still young, by most standards. Only twenty four, and she was a Queen, a warrior and most recently, a mother. Three terrifying tasks to juggle at once.

And just by looking into Star’s soft blue eyes, looking at the wide, innocent smile, Moon felt her heart swell.

“Yes,” she sighed. “You’ll be far better.”

**Author's Note:**

> just so y'all know a sequel should be out in a few days so if you like this, i hope you like the next one!
> 
> anyway comments are always appreciated! c:


End file.
